Godalming had a parking problem before World War Two, as
there was no car park in the town. This was highlighted in
a letter to the local paper in 1939:

"Sir, - In going over some recent copies of your
paper I notice the question of a car park has again arisen
in Godalming.
Up to within two years ago we did all our shopping in Godalming,
but by that time it was such a worrying business with the
car that we decided we could not put up with it. ... I
have always regretted the fact that there was no car park
... Godalming is a good shopping centre ... If people could
park their cars near the shops and cut out the hurry and
worry, it should prove indeed a blessing"[1].

It was not until 1950 that the Crown Court car park was
opened on land behind part of the High Street and it was
announced that, for an experimental period, parking was to
be free[2].
At Christmastime that year the Rotary Club's Christmas tree
was erected in the car park. "It made a picturesque
spectacle, seen through the arch of the reconstructed 16th
century Crown Court"[3].
Parking here was still free in 1956 as were the public lavatories
(on the far side of the archway, above), although the latter
were not being treated overly well[4].

1956.
The message on the back of this car included the comment: "This
is a very nice carpark".
There was no entry to the car park through Crown Court,
but the road signs on the walls on
either side would have been ineffective because of the
poor visibility.

The only entrance was via the one-way Great George
Street, which was extremely narrow. The problem was first
highlighted in late 1951 when a lorry unloading beer at Messrs.
Tyler's completely blocked Great George Street[5]. The
delivery man was prosecuted and fined, but the difficulty
remained. The street was not widened until buildings on the
eastern side of Great George Street, including the old county
branch library, were demolished to make way for a supermarket
development[6].

The car park's exit was directly into the High Street, passing
under the archway and between the 16th century cloth workers'
cottages shown here. On the back cover of the book "Memories ..."
are two good photographs, one of the buildings there before
Waitrose was built and a second showing a rare
photo of a High Street shop with the sign "New Car
Park | Building Works | Deekes and Steere" in one of
its windows[6].
That shop was demolished, as were parts of the buildings
behind it, to create the Crown Court of today. The "Crown"
had been the name of an eighteenth century inn that had closed
by 1795, according to research by John Janaway[7].

Also 1956.
Looking through Crown Court towards the High Street.
On the far side of the road was a good haberdashery,
Trimwells, who sold "dressmaking and
furnishing sundries". W. T. Cullen was next door at No.97.
Neither outlet is on the High Street today. The
estate agents, Clarke Gammon, has also gone
although the business remains elsewhere in Surrey.

In 1958 a Mr Herrington, who had a shoe repairing business
at Grayswood, wanted to establish a branch in Great
George Street. He was turned down because it was considered
to be industrial use, so he appealed against the decision.
There was an Inquiry against the Borough
Council's refusal, but his appeal did not succeed[8].

Less than twenty years after the car park opened
the Crown Court exit was closed because of traffic congestion
in the High Street. The road through the Burys was built
along the route of an existing footpath and a new car park
entrance/exit was made at the same time[9].